Child Trauma
by nweeks3
Summary: In the first incarnation of My Complete Pitch Perfect Story - Part 5, Aubrey & Chad's son starts preschool and he comes down with first day jitters. Meanwhile, Beca & Chloe have unexpected reunions.
1. Chapter 1

**AUTHOR'S NOTES: The last time I had a rather dark moment was when I wrote Aubrey's Nightmare. When we get to that dark moment, I will specify. Anyway, on top of that, this story will combine a few of the prompts on my list into one story. If you'd like to suggest prompts for me, private message me. Fair warning: My personal rules still apply.**

This story takes place in the fall of 2023.

CHAPTER 1:

At Beca, Chloe, & Amy's apartment, on the night before Finn's first day of preschool.

"Is the lasagna ready yet?" Chloe asked walking into the kitchen.

"Almost. Just about 10 minutes left in the oven." Beca said as someone knocked on their door.

"I'll get it." Chloe said as she went to answer the door. "Hey, Aubrey. Come on in."

"Thanks. I hope you don't mind me dropping by, but I've been a bit worried about something." Aubrey said nervously.

"What is it?" Chloe asked.

"Finn's first day of preschool is tomorrow and he's been having first day jitters." Aubrey said.

"Did you talk to Chad about this?" Chloe asked.

"I did. He's noticed those jitters too. He & I just want everything to go well for Finn's sake." Aubrey said.

"Aubrey, you & Chad have nothing to worry about. First day jitters are very common." Beca said.

"Yeah. I had those when I started school, but I turned out alright. And if that's the case, I'm sure Finn will turn out alright too." Chloe said.

Just then, Aubrey received a text from Chad reading "Finn & I are home from the park. Let me know when to start dinner."

She replied "Went over to Beca, Chloe, & Amy's apartment for a bit. I'll let you know when I head back home."

He replied "Well, don't be too long. Don't want to keep Finn hungry."

"I guess I got to head back before dinner gets too cold." Aubrey said.

"Alright. Well, listen: Don't stress too much about everything. I'm sure it'll all be okay." Chloe said.

"Thanks, Chloe. I'll call you later." Aubrey said before leaving.

* * *

20 minutes later, the three were sitting down eating the lasagna when they heard someone knocking at the door and Beca went to answer it.

"Jesse?" Beca asked surprised to see him.

"Hey, Beca." Jesse said before walking in.

"What are you doing here?" Beca asked.

"I've missed you." Jesse said.

"Really? What happened to that girl you were dating?" Beca asked.

"We broke up. Turns out we got into a fight and it only got worse." Jesse said.

"I'm sorry to hear that. But it's nice to see you." Beca said.

"You too. Listen, how about I look for a place to live around here and then we catch up sometime." Jesse suggested.

"That'd be great. Let me give you my number." Beca suggested as Jesse handed her his phone and she put her number in. Yeah, the two became distant after they graduated from Barden, but Beca & Jesse saw this as an opportunity to hopefully rebuild their relationship.

"Thanks. I'll call you sometime." Jesse said.

"Later." Beca said as Jesse left.

"Wow, Beca. I bet you didn't expect him to come by." Chloe said.

"Not at all. But I'll surely be hearing from him later. Right now, let's get back to our dinner." Beca said.

After Beca sat down to continue eating someone else knocked on the door.

"Again?" Beca asked.

"I'll get it this time." Chloe said as she did so and like Beca, she too had an unexpected visitor as well..."Chicago?" She asked surprised to see him.

"Hey, Chloe." Chicago said before walking in.

"I got to say I'm surprised to see you here." Chloe said.

"Yeah. The entire time I was in the National Guard, I couldn't stop thinking about you after that USO Tour." Chicago said.

"Wait; you're not in the National Guard anymore?" Chloe asked.

"Yeah. I left a month ago. And since I remembered that you live here, I was thinking about getting an apartment out here and then we could meet up sometime." Chicago said.

"Sure. Let me give you my number." Chloe suggested as Chicago handed her his phone and she put her number in.

"Thanks. I'll see you around." Chicago said.

"Later." Chloe said as Chicago left.

"Wow. What's next? Bumper?" Amy asked.

"I don't know. But right now, let's get back to our dinner." Chloe said as she sat back down and the three continued to eat their lasagna.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTES: Some of you might read this chapter and ask "Where's the 'trauma' portion of this story?" Well, we'll get to that later. And to be honest, I had a hard time thinking of a good title for this story.**


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2:

The next day as Aubrey was dropping Finn off at preschool, she remembered what Chloe told her the previous night about not worrying about Finn's jitters.

As they approached Finn's classroom, they stopped right outside.

"Well, Finn, this is your classroom. You still a bit nervous?" Aubrey asked.

"A little." Finn said.

"Well, think of it this way, you'll have a nice teacher and you'll be around other people your age. Who knows, you might even end up making a friend or two." Aubrey said.

"What if I already have friends?" Finn asked.

"Sweetie, one can never have too many friends." Aubrey said as a young woman who was Finn's teacher approached them.

"Why, hello there. You must be Mrs. Donaldson. I'm Ms. Collins, and I'll be Finn's teacher." She said introducing herself to Aubrey & Finn.

"It is a pleasure to meet you. Finn's been rather nervous since yesterday." Aubrey explained.

"Well, don't you worry about a thing, Mrs. Donaldson. Lots of kids get nervous on their first day." Ms. Collins explained.

"See what I mean, Finn?" Aubrey asked.

"And rest assured, your son will be in good hands. Who knows, he might end up fitting in quite nicely here." Ms. Collins said.

"Well, in that case...Finn, you have a good first day, alright. Mommy will be back to pick you up later." Already said giving Finn a goodbye kiss.

"Bye, mommy." Finn said as Aubrey left.

Inside the classroom, Finn sat down with the other students on the floor facing the teacher.

"Good morning, class." Ms. Collins said.

"Good morning, Ms. Collins." The class responded in unison.

"Let's start off by introducing ourselves and telling everyone an interesting thing about yourself. It's a perfect way to get to know each other." Ms. Collins said.

While the class continued, Aubrey made her way back to the parking lot.

* * *

Three days later, it was Jessica & Ashley's 1-year anniversary and the couple was cleaning up their apartment.

"Are you sure we should be doing this today?" Ashley asked.

"Yes. It's our 1-year anniversary today and I want to spend it with our fellow Bellas." Jessica said.

"Well, we just got home from the hospital with Danny a few days ago." Ashley said.

"I know, but a lot of them are already coming today." Jessica said.

"Alright. I just hope Danny doesn't get too fussy tonight." Ashley said worried.

"Babe, just calm down; everything will be fine. And if he does get fussy, we'll deal with it then." Jessica said giving her wife a kiss.

* * *

Later that evening, a few of the Bellas were at Jessica & Ashley's apartment for the anniversary party.

The lights were slightly dimmed in the apartment and their dining room table was set with a few appetizers.

"I got to hand it to you, Jessica. This is some party." Chad said.

"Thanks, Chad. We weren't sure if anyone was going to come today." Jessica said.

"Well, we sure wouldn't miss it. But unfortuantely, we can't stay too long. We have to get Finn to bed on time." Aubrey said.

"I understand. And how was Finn's first day of preschool?" Jessica asked.

"He seemed to fit in quite well with his classmates so far." Aubrey said.

"That's always good to hear." Jessica said.

"So, where's that new baby of yours?" Chad asked.

"Ashley's changing his diaper right now." Jessica said as Ashley brought their newborn son out.

"Here he is. Aubrey, Chad, meet Daniel Smith-Jones." Ashley said.

"Awww, he's adorable." Aubrey said.

"Yeah, he is." Chad said.

"Hey, did you see where Finn went?" Aubrey asked noticing he ran off.

"Oh, I think he's over at the table getting some food." Ashley said.

"Thanks." Aubrey said as she went to look for him.

Aubrey found Finn at the dining room table. Of course, Finn saw some chips on the table and wanted some. Aubrey helped Finn by putting a handful of chips on a paper plate. He then sat down and ate them.

Meanwhile, Jessica was talking with Beca & Chloe.

"So, I hear Jesse & Chicago are in town." Jessica said.

"Yeah. Much to our surprise." Beca said.

"But we were very happy to see them after so long." Chloe said.

"I'll bet. Any chance you guys might get back together with them?" Jessica asked.

"Well, as for me & Jesse, he seems like he wants to get back together. But I don't know; I guess we'll see how it turns out over the next few days." Beca said.

"And as for me & Chicago. I knew our relationship was a long shot to begin with. But I too believe that if he's planning to move to New York, we'll see how that goes." Chloe said.

"Well, no matter what happens, you know we'll all be happy for you." Jessica said.

Just then, Aubrey & Chad were about ready to head home for the night, but not before saying goodbye.

"Hey, Jessica. Chad & I have to get going. It's almost Finn's bedtime. But happy anniversary to you & Ashley." Aubrey said.

"Thanks. So glad you were able to come." Jessica said.

"Bye, everyone." Aubrey said as she, Chad, & Finn waved goodbye and went home.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTES: Not going to lie, the anniversary party scene was so far the most difficult scene in this story for me to write.**


	3. Chapter 3

**AUTHOR'S NOTES: Remember when I said at the start of the first chapter, this story may have another dark moment? While the final scene in this chapter may be as close to a dark moment I could think of in this story, it's not as dark as the nightmare scene in Aubrey's Nightmare. Instead, it could be thought as a more emotional moment, so keep a heads up for that.**

CHAPTER 3:

As days passed, Finn was getting used to his new preschool. He seemed to fit right in with his classmates. Often days he came home smiling when he had a good day. But there were some rough times for him too...

This one Friday, three weeks into the new school year, a casual conversation during a playdate with a classmate turned into a threat of violence. His classmate Henry had a jealous & overprotective 10-year old brother who dared Finn to cut his arms open and expected him to have a scar on his arm when he returned to school the following Monday or else...

Hearing those words traumatized Finn to the point where he wasn't talking much for the rest of the day.

* * *

Later that same evening at the dinner table, Aubrey & Chad could see a worried look on Finn's face while they ate.

"Is everything okay, Finn?" Aubrey asked concerned but he only shook his head in response.

"Do you want to talk about what's wrong?" Chad asked but again Finn only shook his head in response.

"Finn, if something's really wrong, you know you can talk to us about it. We'll understand." Aubrey said.

"Yeah. Did something bad happen at preschool today?" Chad asked with which Finn once again shook his head, but did respond.

"It was during my playdate today." Finn said nervously.

"Well, what was it?" Aubrey asked.

"It's...complicated." Finn said nervously.

"Oh, come on; I'm sure it can't be that bad." Chad said.

"It is, okay? I'm just not ready to talk about it right now." Finn said feeling upset.

"Well, when you're ready to tell us, we'll listen to whatever it is, okay?" Aubrey said.

"Okay." Finn said as they all continued to eat.

* * *

That night, Chad read Finn a bedtime story and tucked him in before heading to bed.

Before he & Aubrey went to sleep, they lied awake in their bed wondering what could be wrong with their son.

"What do you think could be wrong with him?" Chad asked.

"I don't know. He's usually open about everything. This is unusual that he's not communicating with us." Aubrey said.

"(sighs) Maybe he'll feel better after a good night's sleep. Good night, Aubrey." Chad said turning off their lamp.

"Good night, Chad." Aubrey said as the two went to sleep.

* * *

At 2am, Aubrey & Chad were asleep when Aubrey heard crying.

"Chad...Chad, wake up." Aubrey said trying to get her husband's attention.

"(groaning) Aubrey, it's 2 in the morning." Chad said looking at the clock radio on their nightstand.

"I know, but listen..." Aubrey said as she heard the crying yet again.

"Oh, my god; could that be Finn?" Chad asked.

"I'll go see if he's okay." Aubrey said as she got out of bed and put on her robe & slippers before doing so.

"Finn?" She said as she entered Finn's bedroom to check on him, but the bedroom was empty.

At that point, she saw the bathroom light was on with the door slightly opened. So, she went to see if everything was okay.

"Finn? Are you okay in there?" She asked knocking on the door. There was no response except for the continued crying.

She slowly opened the door. Luckily he wasn't on the toilet when she did so. She looked around and noticed Finn sitting in the bathtub crying while holding a razor near his arms.

"Finn...what's wrong?" She asked, but Finn didn't answer.

"Sshhh, it's okay...mommy's here." She said trying to comfort Finn.

Finn looked at his mother with tears coming down his face. He took a moment to calm down before answering.

"I'm sorry, mommy." Finn said hugging Aubrey.

"It's okay, sweetie. Why were you crying? And why are you holding a razor? You don't even shave yet." Aubrey asked.

"A bully." Finn nervously said.

"A bully? You mean someone's picking on you in preschool?" Aubrey asked which Finn shook his head.

"It was during my playdate." Finn said tearfully.

"Did something bad happen?" Aubrey asked.

"Yes. During the playdate, Henry's big brother dared me to cut my arms open. But I can't do it. I saw myself holding the razor and when I held it close to my arm, I just couldn't go through with it." Finn said tearfully.

"Sshhh, it's okay. In fact, you don't even have one scar on your body. Listen, why don't we go back to bed and we'll figure out something in the morning." Aubrey said as she held Finn in her arms.

She sat down waiting for Finn to calm down before carrying him back to his bed.

"Good night, Finn. Sleep well." Aubrey said.

"Good night, mommy." Finn said as Aubrey went back to bed.

As Aubrey returned to her & Chad's bedroom, Chad was waiting for Aubrey to come back.

"Is he okay?" Chad asked.

"He was crying because Henry's older brother was bullying him during a playdate." Aubrey said.

"What? Will he be okay?" Chad asked.

"I hope so. I hate to see Finn so sad." Aubrey said as she got back into bed.

"Yeah, me too. Maybe what he needs this weekend is something to take his mind off the whole thing." Chad suggested.

"Got anything in mind?" Aubrey asked.

"Actually, I do: This one night I read him this picture book with a lot of animals in it. He liked it so much, I figured maybe he might want to see some real animals." Chad suggested.

"That's a great idea, Chad. Why don't you take Finn to the zoo in the morning." Aubrey suggested.

"Okay. I'm pretty sure he'd be up to it. And then when he goes back to preschool on Monday, we'll have a talk with Henry's mom." Chad said.

"Couldn't agree more. And if worse comes to worse, Finn could always transfer schools." Aubrey said.

"Well, let's hope it doesn't come to that." Chad said.

"Agreed. But for now, let's try to get some sleep." Aubrey said.

"Yep. Good night, Aubrey." Chad said turning off their lamp.

"Good night, Chad." Aubrey said as the two went back to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4:

The next morning, Aubrey was the first to wake up when the alarm clock rang.

"Morning, Chad." Aubrey said.

"Morning, Aubrey." Chad said.

"(sighs) I hope Finn slept well after last night." Aubrey said.

"Me too. Maybe I should go wake him up." Chad said as he left the bedroom to check on Finn.

"Morning, daddy." Finn said as Chad woke him up.

"Morning, Finn. Did you sleep okay after what happened last night?" Chad asked.

"Yeah. It was hard, but at least I don't have to go to school today." Finn said.

"True. And listen, your mother told me about last night. And we're willing to help you with this problem however we can." Chad said.

"Thanks, daddy." Finn said finally starting to smile a bit.

"Of course. And we were thinking, since it's Saturday, maybe we should do something to help you take your mind off all of this." Chad suggested.

"What did you have in mind?" Finn asked.

"I'll tell you all about it while we're eating breakfast." Chad said.

* * *

One hour later, the three were downstairs in the kitchen having breakfast.

"So, Finn...your father and I were talking and we thought of a way to take your mind off of your problem you've been having." Aubrey said.

"What is it?" Finn asked.

"Remember when I read you that picture book that one night? The one with all the animals in it?" Chad asked which Finn nodded yes.

"Well, we were thinking maybe you might want to see some real animals." Aubrey said.

"Yeah, would you be up for going to the zoo today?" Chad asked.

"Okay. I've never been to the zoo before, but I would love to go." Finn said.

"Then it's settled. You & I will go after we finish our breakfast." Chad said.

* * *

Later that day, Chad & Finn arrived at the zoo.

"I hope he doesn't come here." Finn said worried.

"Who? The boy who threatened you?" Chad asked.

"Yeah." Finn said.

"Listen. As long as you stay with me, you will be safe. I promise, nothing bad will happen to you today." Chad said kneeling down to Finn's eye level.

"Okay." Finn said.

"Now come on, let's go see what kind of animals they have here." Chad said as they began walking.

As they were walking through the zoo, they stopped to see many of the different animals. Many of the ones they stopped at were ones Finn recognized from that very same picture book Chad read him a few nights ago. In fact, the one animal Finn recognized immediately was the tiger just by its stripes and sharp teeth. He even remembered what Chad said about not getting too close to animals with sharp teeth. But luckily despite Chad's warning, Finn wasn't scared at all. In fact, about 5 minutes after they arrived, Finn started smiling the whole time they were walking through the zoo. Chad was smiling too because he felt grateful that his idea to take Finn's mind off of that bully was working out well.

Now as Chad & Finn were looking at a group of monkeys, they ran into Alice & Grace.

"Hey, Chad." Alice said.

"Alice, Grace, fancy running into you two here." Chad said.

"Yeah. Grace loves animals and I had today off from work, so I figured it'd be a good day to come out here." Alice said.

"Yeah. Finn had a rough playdate yesterday, so I figured bringing him here could take his mind off of it." Chad said.

"Is everything alright?" Alice asked.

"Not really. Aubrey found him crying in the bathroom last night and had to comfort him." Chad said.

"Awww...is he okay now?" Alice asked.

"Right now he is. He hasn't cried once since we got here." Chad said.

"Well, that's a good thing. And listen, if there's anything I can do to help, please let me know." Alice said.

"Will do." Chad said.

"Mommy, can we go see the penguins?" Grace asked.

"Sure, honey. Do you guys want to come with us?" Alice asked.

"Sure. Come on, Finn. Let's go see the penguins." Chad said as he & Finn followed Alice & Grace.

While they were walking towards the penguin exhibit..."So how's Ken doing these days?" Chad asked.

"Oh, you know, he's very busy with work." Alice said.

"What exactly does he do?" Chad asked.

"He's a detective for the Paramus Police Department." Alice said.

"Nice. Well, you should definitely say hi to him for us." Chad said.

"Definitely." Alice said just as they reached the penguin exhibit.

* * *

Hours later, Chad & Finn were heading back to the car.

"Daddy, I had a wonderful time today." Finn said happily.

"Really?" Chad asked.

"Yeah. I love the zoo. Thanks for taking me, daddy." Finn said.

"Of course. Do you maybe want to come back again sometime?" Chad asked.

"Yeah. And can mommy come with us next time?" Finn asked.

"I don't see why not. I'll talk to her when she gets home tonight." Chad said.

"Okay." Finn said as they reached the car.

Chad put Finn in his car seat before getting into the driver's seat and heading back home.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTES: It's also worth noting that this chapter also has a deleted scene where Chad was trying to shave, but he couldn't find his razor. That's because after Finn's traumatic experience from the previous night, Aubrey moved Chad's razor to the safe in their attic and asked him not to give Finn the combination as a way to keep Finn from getting his hands on that razor again.**


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5:

That night, Beca & Chloe went out on a double date with Jesse & Chicago.

They had dinner at an italian restuarant in downtown Manhattan.

"I have to say, I was definitely surprised you two came all the way to New York." Beca said.

"Yeah. I mean, I knew all along that making the trip up here would be a long shot. But sometimes when you want something, you just got to go for it." Jesse said.

"And now that I'm no longer in the National Guard, I'm looking to reunite with some of my friends." Chicago said.

"Well, not only do you have me, but all of us Bellas live rather close to each other." Chloe said.

"That's wonderful. I'm especially hoping to see Chad again. Seeing him with you Bellas at the USO Tour 5 years ago really brought me back." Chicago said.

"Well, you don't have to go far to see him. He and Aubrey have been married for 5 years now and they live in Paramus." Beca said.

"Do you know their address?" Chicago asked.

"Sure do. Let me write it down for you." Chloe said as she took out a piece of paper and a pen. On the paper, she wrote down Chad & Aubrey's address as well as Chad's phone number.

"Sweet. I'll give him a call tonight." Chicago said as he put the paper in his pocket.

"And I should probably call Benji later tonight. I haven't seen him since he & Emily got married." Jesse said.

"Well, they live in Hartford now. I can give you their address if you want." Beca said.

"That'd be great." Jesse said as Beca took out a piece of paper and a pen and wrote down Emily & Benji's address.

Just as he put the paper in his pocket, a waiter arrived with their food.

"Oh, that looks good." Chloe said admiring her food.

"Yeah, it does." Beca agreed since she ordered the same thing Chloe did.

* * *

After they finished their dinner, they began to walk a few blocks before reaching stairs leading to a subway station.

"I really had a great time tonight, Jesse." Beca admitted.

"Me too. How about you & me have a movie marathon at my place sometime." Jesse said.

"I'd like that." Beca said before Jesse leaned in to kiss her.

Yeah, at one point she wasn't a fan of movies, but all those years of her dating Jesse when they were in college changed her mind. It made Beca realize that there are some really great movies out there.

"I'll call you later." Jesse said before heading down the subway stairs.

Meanwhile..."That was such a great night, Chicago." Chloe admitted.

"Couldn't agree more. It really means a lot to me that even after that USO Tour, you never forgot about me." Chicago said.

"Of course. And I'll be sure to let Chad know that you're in town." Chloe said.

"That'd be great. I'll even call him in the morning. Maybe he'll want to catch up over coffee." Chicago said.

"I'm sure he'd be up to it. Well, have a great night." Chloe said.

"You too." Chicago said before heading down the same subway stairs Jesse went down.

* * *

Back at Beca, Chloe, & Amy's apartment, Beca & Chloe were lying in their bed looking back on the night they had.

"That was the best date I ever had." Beca admitted.

"Me too. I nearly forgot how amazing Chicago was. I had no idea he knew where we lived. I never told him." Chloe said.

"Same with Jesse. I thought it was over for good between me & him when we moved here. But now that he's in town, maybe this'll be a good thing for us." Beca said.

"Yeah. And another note, I hope things are going better with Finn." Chloe said.

"What? I thought his first day jitters would've died down." Beca said.

"It's worst than that now: Aubrey & I went to lunch today and she told me that Finn had a rough playdate yesterday, and she found Finn in the bathroom at 2 in the morning looking like he might cut his arms open. But Finn just didn't have the nerve to go through with it." Chloe explained.

"What? Why didn't you tell me? Will he be okay?" Beca asked.

"I hope so. Aubrey said that Chad took Finn to zoo today hoping it'll take his mind off of what happened." Chloe said.

"Well, no matter what happens. I think we should be there for them." Beca said.

"Couldn't agree more. Good night, Beca." Chloe said as she turned off the lamp by their bedside.

"Good night, Chloe." Beca said as she immediately fell asleep. But before Chloe went to sleep she had this thought..."Maybe I should call her. See how she's doing."


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6:

The following Monday, Aubrey came into Finn's bedroom to wake him up for the day.

"Morning, Finn." Aubrey said noticing Finn hiding under the covers. "Finn, please...come out from under the covers." She pleaded.

"NO! I don't want to go back to school, mommy." Finn said feeling scared.

"Finn, I know you're scared, but you're going to have to go back to school at some point." Aubrey said taking the covers off of Finn's head.

"I don't want to, mommy. He's going to kill me for not having a scar on my arm." Finn said starting to cry.

"No one is going to kill you. Your father and I are going to talk to Henry's mom today. I'm sure we'll get this whole thing straightened out." Aubrey said.

"Do you really think so?" Finn asked.

"Of course I do. Now come on, let's go downstairs and eat breakfast." Aubrey said as the two went downstairs.

* * *

30 minutes later as Aubrey, Chad, & Finn were eating breakfast, the doorbell rang and Aubrey went to answer it.

At the door was Henry, his older brother, Jack, and his mother, Leslie.

"Hi, Leslie." Aubrey said.

"Hi, Aubrey. May we come in?" Leslie asked.

"Sure. Have a seat on the couch." Aubrey said as the three did so.

"Can you go get Finn? I want him included in this conversation." Leslie asked.

"Sure." Aubrey said as she headed back to the kitchen table to grab Finn.

As she carried Finn over to the living room, he saw Henry and smiled, but he then screamed when he saw Jack in the same room.

"FINN! Calm down. No need to scream. He's not going to hurt you." Aubrey said trying to calm Finn down before they sat down on the couch.

"What happened? Is Finn okay? I heard screaming." Chad asked rushing into the living room.

"He'll be fine, babe. Why don't you join us on the couch." Aubrey said as Chad did so.

"So, what do want to talk to us about?" Aubrey asked Leslie.

"I believe we owe you all an apology. It seems after Henry had his playdate with Finn, he didn't talk to his brother all weekend." Leslie explained.

"All weekend? Why is that?" Aubrey asked.

"I asked Henry a bunch of times what was going on until I finally convinced him to tell me last night." Leslie explained.

"Yeah, Finn was acting similar at the dinner table that same evening. He didn't talk much then." Chad explained.

"What made him tell you his side of the story?" Leslie asked.

"I found him in the bathtub crying at about 2am that night looking like he might cut. But he said he couldn't go through with it." Aubrey explained.

"I am very sorry for Jack's behavior. He's been acting out ever since his father and I got our divorce." Leslie said.

"How long have you two been divorced?" Chad asked.

"6 months." Leslie said.

"Awww, I'm so sorry." Aubrey said sympathetically.

"It's okay. This one night after New Year's I caught him having an affair at a club." Leslie explained.

"Wow. I'm sorry you had to go through that." Chad said sympathetically.

"Thanks. My boys miss him very much and thankfully we worked out a deal where they do get to see him at least once or twice a week." Leslie explained.

"That's a good thing. Anyway, not to be rude, but can we get back on topic, please?" Aubrey asked.

"Right...Jack, is there anything you'd like to say?" Leslie asked.

"(sighs) Finn, I'm sorry I said that stuff to you during your playdate. Sometimes I get jealous and overprotective. And the fact that Henry ignored me all weekend made me realize how selfish I was to you. It was wrong of me to demand a scar on your arms. I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me." Jack said.

"Maybe someday. Just...not right now." Finn said.

"I think that sounds fair." Aubrey said.

"Well, Jack, I'm proud of you for apologizing. However, I'm afraid a simple apology will not be enough to make up for what you did." Leslie said.

"I know. I'm prepared for whatever punishment you give me." Jack said to Leslie.

"Well, starting after school today, you are grounded for the rest of the week. And you'll only be allowed out of the house for school." Leslie said firmly.

"I think we ought to add to that." Aubrey said.

"From now on, whenever Henry & Finn want to have a playdate, Aubrey or myself will pick up Henry at your place and we'll bring him either here to our place or we'll take both boys to the park. Just to make sure Jack does not accompany the two on future playdates." Chad added.

"I think that sounds like a reasonable deal. What do you say, Henry?" Leslie asked.

"I like that idea." Henry said.

"Great. Thank you so much for this talk, Leslie. This really helped not just us, but Finn as well." Aubrey said relieved.

"My pleasure." Leslie said shaking Aubrey's hand. "Now come on, boys...let's get you both to school. Again, Aubrey, I'm really sorry. I'll see you around." She continued as she & her two boys left.

"Mommy, daddy, will you promise me one thing?" Finn asked.

"Anything for you, Finn." Aubrey said.

"Don't ever get a divorce." Finn said.

"Sweetie, when I was pregnant with you, your father & I made a promise that we'd love you WAY too much to throw away our marriage." Aubrey explained.

"And to this day, we will continue to keep our promise." Chad added to which Finn smiled.

"We promise. We're not going anywhere." Aubrey assured him prompting an emotional hug.

"Now come on, let's get you to school." Chad said as Finn grabbed his backpack and the two headed for Chad's car.

It took three days, but Finn did eventually forgive Henry's brother for what he did. As a result, the two started to get along real well. Ever since, he'd often come home and share stories about his day to his parents. And on top of that, Finn was able to sleep well again without worries. This made Aubrey relieved knowing that she & Chad won't have to worry about a repeat of that one night from the past weekend.

A few days later, the Bellas had another one of their usual get together nights at Aubrey & Chad's house. When they all got together, Aubrey thought Finn would want to share some stories about his happy days at preschool. Finn had so much to talk about and the Bellas were all so happy that he was starting to enjoy it more than he did before.

THE END!

 **AUTHOR'S NOTES: And so that wraps up this story. I'd also like to thank GeekGirl10120 & RizzV825 for helping me out with this story.**


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